Islamic Congress's Letter to PM Supports Position on Syria and Lebanon, and Warns That Aggressive U.S. Policies in Middle East Will Lead to More Death, Destruction and Misery
In a letter today to Prime Minister Paul Martin, the Canadian Islamic Congress said it endorses yesterday Martin's characterization that Syrian troops are in Lebanon as peacekeepers, not invaders.Funny the same could be said about Israel and the Palestinian problem. Leave it to the two to work out. "The withdrawal of Syrian troops from Lebanon should be left up to those two countries to negotiate," said the CIC.

CIC also urged the Canadian government to moderate Washington's aggressive and dangerous policies against Iran, Syria and Lebanon, warning that failure to do so will lead only to more death, destruction and human misery in the Middle East.

To date, the American-led invasion of Iraq has resulted in the deaths of more than 100,000 Iraqis and thousands of Americans. Iraq has been transformed from country with 100% employment and a stable public service infrastructure, into an impoverished nation in disarray, with more than half of its adult workforce jobless. From being one of the leading Middle East states in administration, education and health care, Iraq has fallen to one of the world's most disadvantaged societies.

The CIC is charging that America's aggressive Middle East policies are designed primarily to shore up Israel's military power and economic advantages in the region, while attempting to divert world attention from Israel's territorial expansion into the West Bank through illegal Jews-only settlements.

According to CIC policy and research, Canada is positioned to moderate the American stance on 10 key issues:

1. The U.S. must stop interfering in the internal affairs of Lebanon. The more it does so, the more likelihood that Lebanon will again drift into civil war. This is especially true after the brutal assassination of Lebanon's former prime minster Rafik Hariri last week. Both during and after his term as prime minister, Hariri had been instrumental in building bridges of understanding and consensus among Lebanon's political parties.

2. The presence of Syrian military forces in Lebanon is an internal matter which must be resolved between those two nations. Syria's involvement adheres to the terms of the Altaif Peace Agreement signed by both parties to end Lebanon's civil war, which lasted from 1975-1990.

3. The U.S. must stop Israel's almost daily intrusions into Lebanese airspace, coastal waters and land territory -- especially the occupied area of Shab'a.

4. The U.S. must stop targeting Syria, and stop Israel from attacking it, as it did a year ago.

5. Aggressive U.S. policy against Iran and its plan to attack it, with or without Israel's help, will further erode hopes for world peace.

6. The U.S. must offer Iraqis a definite withdrawal timetable and bring young Americans home before the best years of another generation (as during the Vietnam conflict) are lost. The pretense of protecting Iraqis from possible civil war (i.e. from themselves) is weak and unsubstantiated; American forces have shown they are helpless in protecting their own ground troops.

7. Aggressive American policies in the Middle East are fueling radicalism and extremism, thereby sabotaging the cause of peace with justice.

8. The U.S. must pursue Israel to fulfill its promised withdrawal from Gaza, while ceasing the expansion of illegal Jewish settlements in the West Bank.

9. Aggressive U.S. policies in the Middle East are responsible for bringing chronic economic instability to the region, resulting in more debt being loaded on the backs of the poor. The only benefactors are big commercial banks who will happily lend money to war-ravaged countries at exorbitant interest rates.

10. Political, social and economic reform movements in all Middle East countries are grinding to a halt because of the disruption caused by U.S. involvement in their national affairs.

Questions continue to swirl on Parliament Hill about Paul Martin's description of Syria as occupying Lebanon to help to "keep the peace."

The Prime Minister made the remarks in French on Thursday, coming out of a cabinet meeting. He was asked about the bombing that killed a popular opponent of Syrian presence in Lebanon, Rafik Hariri.

The PM suggested the bombing was a sign the Syrians were not keeping the peace.

Canada's official foreign policy position falls in line with that of the United Nations -- that the 14,000 Syrian troops that have lingered since the civil war of 20 years ago constitute an illegal occupation.

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